I use Eclipse almost every day at work for Java development. It isn't the best piece of software out there but it mostly works, has a plethora of features and you can't beat the price!

I do have to make several changes to the default settings to make Eclipse work according to my tastes. However, these changes are linked to a workspace and thus, every time that I create a new workspace, I have to remember the tweaks and re-do them.

So here's my attempt at listing them all out so I have a quick reference the next time I need to setup Eclipse.

Installation

Head to eclipse.org/downloads/ and get the relevant Eclipse bundle. The Eclipse IDE for Java Developers is what would generally suit me as a core Java developer. However, I find this bundle to contain unnecessary features (integrated CVS client, really?!) and prefer building up from a base installation starting with just the Eclipse Platform Runtime Binary. Unfortunately, the Eclipse folks keep re-organizing their site and each time, I've to hunt for the download location for the platform binary package. A bit of web searching should help here.

Once you've installed just the base Eclipse platform runtime, you can add the relevant plugins from within Eclipse. Go to Help > Install New Software or Help > Eclipse Marketplace and search for the required features.

My current list of plugins:

Eclipse Java Development Tools

Eclipse Color Theme

ExploreFS

Perforce SCM Support

Vrapper (Vim Emulator)

Startup

Eclipse is a memory hog. It is unlikely that the default memory settings will give you a decent experience so it is best to change them. Edit the eclipse.ini file (lives next to eclipse.exe) as follows:

Java > Installed JREs:Add a new JDK by pointing to the install directory; Add -server to the Default VM Arguments; Use Add External JARs to add tools.jar to the default libraries.

Team > Perforce:
Check Use "move" command during refactoring operations

Ideally, you should be able to File > Export > General > Preferences from one workspace and then File > Import > General > Preferences into a new workspace. But it takes only a couple of minutes to make the above config changes and I don't have to worry that Eclipse screwed up something else under the covers. :-)